Josiah's last push for glory before bowing out

GLASGOW: It was only last December that national cyclist Josiah Ng survived a life-threatening crash.
Instead of taking it slow and steady, like many others, the
34-year-old Josiah is gearing up for an exhausting time in his final
Commonwealth Games (in Glasgow) and Asian Games (in Incheon, South
Korea) outings.

It’s as if he wants to prove to everyone that he still has fire in his belly.
Josiah won the keirin gold at the last Commonwealth Games in New
Delhi four years ago. He also won a silver medal in each of the last
three editions of the Asiad –2002 Busan, 2006 Doha and 2010 Guangzhou.

For the Glasgow Games, though, retaining the keirin gold is furthest from his mind.
“I’m competing in more events in the Glasgow Commonwealth Games than
the previous one. I’ll be taking part in the individual and team sprint,
keirin and 1km time trial,” said Josiah.
“This must come as a surprise to many, especially since I had just come through such a big crash, right?”

He suffered a broken collarbone, ribs and punctured his lung after a
crash during the keirin event at the Track World Cup round in Mexico.
“The good thing is that I do not have any memory of the crash,” he said.

“The recovery process has been good and my team-mates have been really supportive.
“I have taken care of my diet. I’m 34 now and competing against guys
10 years younger than me. Everything has been positive so far.

“My focus right now is to lead the sprint team to success ... a national record would be great.
“We cannot control how others perform, especially riders from the top
three countries – New Zealand, Australia and Britain. But we can push
ourselves hard.”

The team sprint event is on Thursday and the others in the team are Azizulhasni Awang, Muhd Edrus Yunos and Rizal Tisin.

“Keirin is the last event for me … I will take it one event at a
time,’ said Josiah, who is also highly motivated to do well in his
fourth and final Asiad.

“The Commonwealth Games is my focus right now … but my ultimate goal
is to get it right in the Asiad. I will be hugely disappointed if I end
up with a fourth silver.”

“I cannot see myself competing at the next Commonwealth Games and
Asian Games. I will be 38 by then. My heart is just excited thinking
about my last ride in these two back-to-back Games. Hope they will end
well for me.”